Working with Transparent layers,

[bindible]

Hello,, new to this forum and to P2EXE, Just about tore my hair out trying to use transparent layers, I am fully aware of doing the basic work in photoshop, but when i save that work as a psd file, I cannot use this in Pte, and see the layers. Am I right in thinking this program only uses JPG , if so how do I use layers,

I have some tutorials which I used, and said all layer work was saved as psd, but this just wont show up in the files when I open pte .

Any help greatly appreciated,

Suzy

[ksf]

Hi Suzy,

I use layers a great deal in photoshop and save the images as a psd file in order to keep the layers preserved so that if I need to make future changes I can open the PSD file and there they are.

However, when saving images to use in PTE they have to be saved as JPG's (this compresses the visible layers within photoshop into a single 'flat' image), i.e. you can no longer alter the layer elements that made up that image once it has been saved as a jpeg - hence the reason for saving as both file types. Using layers in photoshop is a powerful tool once you realise their potential for allowing you to alter images simply by switching different layers on/off when saving them to jpeg format.

If you want to use an image with a transparent background then you have to save the layer from your PSD file as a PNG file format. This only applies if you are using the new PTEv5 (beta test version) however and is therefore probably not relevant to you at the moment as I hope being a newcomer to PTE that you are learning the ropes with version 4.48 first.

Best of luck,

[Lin Evans]

Hi Suzy,

PTE works a little differently than what you are used to. You have unlimited layers (limited only by your hardware) in PTE but you need to use PNG rather than PSD files if you want a transparent background. You "can" use transparent GIF files, but PNG is much superior because you are limited to 256 colors with GIF and PNG has no real practical limit.

Since you have complete transparency control over each layer in PTE 5.0 beta, there is no need to prepare most images in Photoshop, etc., unless you want a transparent background (floating image) then you do that in Photoshop or other software. Regular jpg files can be made transparent, etc., in PTE by simply adjusting the opacity of the file. For example if you wanted a white background with a ghost-like image showing through, you could simply put a white jpg on one layer and your choice of other file in another and adjust the opacity to the desired degree to see the effect you wish. Of course if you want to have variable transparency in particular places in the image then you need to do that in Photoshop and save as either a jpg or png then use the file in PTE.

If you will let us know what you are trying to achieve, perhaps some of us on the forum can suggest the easiest way to achieve your goals.

Best regards,

Lin

Hello,, new to this forum and to P2EXE, Just about tore my hair out trying to use transparent layers, I am fully aware of doing the basic work in photoshop, but when i save that work as a psd file, I cannot use this in Pte, and see the layers. Am I right in thinking this program only uses JPG , if so how do I use layers,

I have some tutorials which I used, and said all layer work was saved as psd, but this just wont show up in the files when I open pte .

Any help greatly appreciated,

Suzy

[bindible]

Hi and thanks to Lin & Keith, i saw an exe presentation, not sure if it was done with proshow or PTE, it had a cloudy sky , and air ballons floating across the screen,, the balloon had to be just the balloon and no background on it at all, uumm am I making sense, Ithought i got the show from Beckham site, but have been back and dont seem to be able to find it, now afar as I know, a layer with totaly black b/ground would have to be either PNG or PSD ? and getting so frustrated with both programs as I dont seem to be able to achief this,

Hope this has but some light on what i am trying to do,

Thanks

Suzy

[Lin Evans]

Hi and thanks to Lin & Keith, i saw an exe presentation, not sure if it was done with proshow or PTE, it had a cloudy sky , and air ballons floating across the screen,, the balloon had to be just the balloon and no background on it at all, uumm am I making sense, Ithought i got the show from Beckham site, but have been back and dont seem to be able to find it, now afar as I know, a layer with totaly black b/ground would have to be either PNG or PSD ? and getting so frustrated with both programs as I dont seem to be able to achief this,

Hope this has but some light on what i am trying to do,

Thanks

Suzy

Hi Suzy,

This is really easy to achieve - and I think you did see that scene on Barry's site. Let's start with the basics.

Take any image you wish to make transparent as a cut out into PhotoShop. Now there are several ways to do this, so I'm just going to give you one easy example. Let's take a balloon for an example. Open a balloon jpg in Photoshop first do a "Select All" then "Edit Copy".. Click on "File, New" then set the background to transparent, 8 bit RGB color and choose a file size in dimensions to match the jpg of the balloon. Next do "Edit" "Paste" and this will paste the full jpg of the balloon over the transparency. Next choose the Eraser tool with opacity set to 100% and erase all parts you don't want to appear. Next save the file as a PNG (do not flatten or merge layers).

Open PTE and put on the slide list the background you wish to use for the balloon to appear on then click on Objects and Animations and set the view to about 10% (up at the top of the screen to the right of "paste"). This will make the background look like a large postage stamp surrounded by lots of black space. Right click in this black space far away from the jpg image and completely outside the bounding rectangle of green surrounding the picture. Choose "Add File" and then select your balloon PNG file. Adjust the size of the balloon with the rectangle visually and place it anywhere you want it to be at the start of the slide show. Next use the Customize Slide feature to set the time for the entire slide appearance. For now use 30 seconds. You will find the balloon jpg on the Objects list on the right. Click on the balloon file then go somewhere along the time line and set a keypoint - say 15 seconds for an example. Now move the balloon by clicking and holding down the mouse key with the mouse cursor in the center of the balloon and move the balloon by dragging it to a new position. You can also change the size, etc., at this time.

Next click on "Preview" and you will see exactly what this animation will look like. Place other keypoints for the balloon and move the position and change the size to see how this affects the action and animation.

By changing the opacity of the balloon, you can cause it to appear or disappear at any keypoint. The action of changing opacity will happen "between" keypoints. If you want the balloon to stay 100% opaque until only two seconds before a keypoint, place another keypoint two seconds before where you want it to fade out and set this opacity to 100%. You will begin to see how this works. All actions and animations take place "between" two keypoints. Opacity is actually another animation so if you set the opacity to 100% (the default) at the start of a slide show then set a keypoint at 4 seconds with the opacity to zero, the balloon will begin to fade out gradually and fade out completely at the 4 second point. So if you want it to stay visible until three seconds, you need to set a keypoint at three seconds and make that opacity 100% at that time. This will keep the fade out action from happening until the three second point then between three and four seconds the balloon will disappear. If you want it back suddenly, then you need to set a keypoint just before where you want it to re-appear and set this opacity to zero then another keypoint shortly after and set the opacity to 100%..

Practice a bit and soon you will be animating multiple objects with ease making them move about, etc. Read the tutorials on theDom's site and you will learn how to use and move the "center" point for any object to control the type of rotation either around the center of the object itself or around a point where you "move" the center to. Soon you will learn to use rectangles and parent/child relationships to create any type of bezier curve you wish an object to follow in movement. It's a very exciting and powerful program - give it a bit of time and don't be afraid to ask for detailed help. We're all here to help you get going and learn to use the program.

Here's a quick and dirty sample - I just cut out one of my balloon samples and saved as a transparent PNG then animated it on a background scene. I used the same PNG for each of the two balloons as you can see. Just unzip the file and open the PTE file in PicturesToExe and study the path of each balloon via keypoints.

http://www.lin-evans.net/p2e/balloonsample.zip

Best regards,

Lin

[ksf]

Hello Suzy (again) and thanks Lin for saving me the trouble of typing up a reply such as yours (you are obviously a far better and faster typist then I am).

The only thing I would add for Suzy is that when you are on the objects and animation screen (remember we are talking v5 here) there is a percent sign at the top. This adjusts how much of the image is visible on the screen. If you set this to say 25% then the image area and the green rectangle Lin refers to will shrink into the middle of the screen. This then lets you drag the animated object 'off screen' so that you can start and/or end your balloon flight outside the normal viewing area. I hope this is making sense - I'm sure it will do if you try it.

Best of luck